World War Two: Women in the Military

During World War II, thousands of men were deployed overseas to fight in the U.S. military. This created a need for women to take over the military roles that had been reserved for men until this time, in order to free more men up for combat. Many women felt that it was their patriotic duty to participate in these programs, but some also saw it as a way to challenge traditional gender roles. About 350,000 American women enlisted for the war effort, and they were given unprecedented access to essential roles in military service that had long been a male-only field. Although this was not the first time women had served in the military (see our free resources and curriculum about the Hello Girls and female yeomen during the Great War), the Second World War really paved the way for women’s military service in peacetime.

Utah women served in every branch of the military. They flew military planes and men across the country as WASPs, helped ensure military operations ran smoothly, served as clerks and lab technicians, worked to ensure the men in combat had the supplies and support they needed, and delivered frontline medical care. Their work was absolutely vital to the war effort and also reshaped public perception of what women could contribute to society. Many women were expected to return to traditional roles after the war ended, but their war work opened doors for future women in the military. These service women proved that during a time of crisis, women not only had the skills and strength to contribute to the war effort but that they were indispensable.

At the end of the war, the U.S. military discharged most women and disbanded some of the specialized women’s units. But the way female service members rose to meet the challenges of the war opened doors for their future in the armed forced. Congress passed the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act in 1948, giving women the ability to serve as regular military personnel for the first time.

Utah women participated in four key military groups during World War Two:

1. WASPs (Women Airforce Service Pilots): These 1,074women were often referred to as “Fly Girls”. They flew planes for non-combat missions which freed up more male pilots to go to war. Learn more through Marjorie Christiansen’s story or this Hill Aerospace Museum video about Alberta Hunt Nicholson. WASPs racked up more than 60 million miles, flew every type of military aircraft, and piloted every type of mission flown by their male Army Air Force counterparts except combat. During training, recruits had hundreds of hours of ground school and flight training. They knew Morse code, meteorology, military law, physics, aircraft mechanics, navigation and other subjects.

During World War II, WASPs flew 80 percent of all ferrying missions, delivering over 12,000 aircraft and freeing around 900 male pilots for combat duty. 38 WASPs lost their lives and one disappeared during their wartime service. Although WASPs fulfilled many military duties, they were U.S. federal civil service employees so they had no military standing or benefits and were not originally recognized as veterans. Each WASP member paid for her own transportation costs to training sites, for her dress uniforms, and for room and board. They only received veteran status in 1977 after decades of lobbying. In 2005, Utahn Marjorie Christiansen was honored by the Arnold Air Society/Silver Wings Joint National Project with Wings Across America. She died in 2008, just a few years before WASPs received the Congressional Gold Medal. Only 300 women of the group were still living at this time. President Obama said, “The Women Airforce Service Pilots courageously answered their country’s call in a time of need while blazing a trail for the brave women who have given and continue to give so much in service to this nation since.”

2. WACs (Women’s Army Corps): These women took on jobs like clerks, mechanics, and drivers for the Army. Learn more through Blandina Govea Tuero’s story, a Latina WAC who served as a cook. The Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAACs) was formed on May 15, 1942, but just a few months later the word “auxiliary” was dropped from the name and the Women’s Army Corps (WACs) was formed, giving women full military benefits like their male counterparts. General Douglas MacArthur called the WACs “My best soldiers” because they worked harder, complained less, and had more discipline than many of their male counterparts.

Priscilla Yasuda enlisted at the first Utah Nisei to be a WAC. Nisei means the second generation of Japanese immigrants in a new country. Her parents immigrated from Japan to the United States and Priscilla was born in the U.S. She wrote about her experience HERE (on page 6, “A WAC Private Writes Back About Life of the Girl GI”).

Despite facing resistance and discrimination, more than 150,000 women served in the Women’s Army Corps during World War II, performing vital noncombat roles and paving the way for women’s permanent inclusion in the US military. Stories of discrimination and challenges WACs faced can be found HERE.

3. WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service): Women in the Navy who worked as lab technicians, radio operators, code breakers, and more. Learn more about five Utah WAVES here. The US Navy established the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES) on July 30, 1942. They were not an auxiliary unit but an official part of the Navy with full military status, pay, and benefits equal to their male counterparts. They were restricted to noncombat roles, filling administrative, communications, and aviation support duties. Over 100,000 women served as WAVES during WWII. They faced gender-based restrictions and discrimination but proved that women were essential to the war effort. They helped lay the foundation for full integration of women into the Navy.

Utahn Kathryn Klaveano told her recruiters “I will go AWOL before I’ll be a secretary.” She worked on domestic military flights to help transport wounded soldiers, military personnel, and supplies. Ruth Klein had three brothers fighting in the war at the time, and she wanted to join too. She had grown up pheasant hunting with her dad and brothers, so she became a gunnery specialist who trained soldiers on the skeet-shooting range. She also taught men how to identify different aircraft in the sky. Other Utah women joined the WAVES to do their part for the country, have a chance to see the world, or serve in the place of a brother or friend who had died.

4. Army Nurse Corps: Trained nurses who cared for wounded soldiers, sometimes near the battlefields. More than 59,000 nurses served as commissioned officers in the US Army. They provided care in field hospitals, evacuation hospitals, on hospital trains and ships, and sometimes even near the front lines. Utahn Ora Mae Hyatt reached the rank of Second Lieutenant during her time in the Army Nurse Corps. She was first stationed overseas in Okinawa, serving right behind the front lines and then treating men from the Bataan Death March. When the war ended, Ora stayed overseas, caring for wounded soldiers so that they could make the trip back to the United States.

Students will understand the roles and impact of Utah women in four WWII military groups (WASPs, WACs, WAVES, and the Army Nurse Corps) and recognize their contributions to the war effort. There is a lot of material here. Feel free to pick and choose which group you want to focus on or use the entire lesson.

Utah Core Alignment: Standard 4.4.6, UT. Studies Standard 3.2

1. Women in the military during WWII (15-20 minutes)

• • Using the included slides (access the Google Slides here or download as PDF or PPT in the Materials section) to introduce students to the 4 military groups through which Utah women contributed to the war effort: WASPs, WACs, WAVES, and the Army Nurse Corps. Highlight a few Utah women from each group.

2. Service and Identity: Women in the military during WWII (5-10 minutes)

1. • Discuss how military service allowed women to step into new roles, challenge gender norms, and create a sense of purpose and identity during the war.

3. Legacy and Impact (5-10 minutes)

• • Briefly reflect on the enduring legacy of women’s military service during World War II and its contribution to American military history and gender equality.
  • The legacy of women’s service during World War II is evident in its impact on both the US military and broader struggle for gender equality. Women were able to fill urgent wartime needs but also challenged deeply rooted assumptions about women’s roles in society. These women were pioneers in a male-dominated sphere. They paved the way for permanent inclusion of women in all branches of the US military.
  • At the time, many women saw their contributions as merely temporary wartime measures. In reality, they laid the groundwork for future reforms in military policy. The legacy of their service lies on today in our fully integrated armed forces.
  • Although these women have mostly passed away, it’s important for all of us to learn about the critical roles they played in our history.

4. Activity: Codebreaking for the War Effort (15-20 minutes)

• Objective: Students will engage in a simple codebreaking exercise to experience the kind of secret communication work performed by women in military roles during WWII (Some WAVES, WASPs and WACs utilized codebreaking techniques to communicate).
  1. Introduce the context: 
     • Briefly explain how the military sent coded messages to make sure that transmissions were secure and to confuse enemies. 
  2. Distribute the code sheet(s):
     • Give students the provided decoding activity. They will decode one message using a Caesar Cipher and encode one message using Morse Code. 
     • Answer key: Caesar Cipher Shift of 3 (each alphabet letter is shifted forward 3 places).
       Coded message: IOB JLUOV KHOSHG ZLQ WKH CDU. Decoded message: FLY GIRLS HELPED WIN THE WAR.
  3. Students decode message: 
     • Working in pairs or small groups, students will try to break the Casear Cipher code using the cipher key, or for advanced learners, let them discover the shift on their own. Then they will encode the second message into Morse Code.
  4. Reflection prompt: 
     • How does learning about Utah women’s military roles in WWII challenge or change what you know about the war?
     • Imagine you were a woman assigned to top-secret codebreaking. How would you describe your work in a letter to a family member (without revealing secrets)?

*Engagement Tip: Turn this activity into a mini competition with a time limit or award small prizes for fastest or most accurate decoding. You could also create additional message for multiple levels of difficulty or historical clues that relate to actual WWII missions. For example: Coded message: “Gurs lq wkh ilsog qhdu wkh idupkrxvh. Eb wkh eoxh iodj.” Decoded message: “Drop in the field near the farmhouse. By the blue flag.”

Optional extension: Invite students to explore biographies, personal narratives, photos, or service records of Utah women who served in WWII (biographies and primary source set links are all available on our WWII toolkit here). Prompt discussion on how these women’s stories reflect resilience, identity, and social change.

Some questions to consider:

1. What personal challenges did these women face?
2. How did military service shape their sense of self?
3. How did their contributions pave the way for future generations?